Russian-U.K. oil company TNK-BP Holding (TNBP.RS) expects last year's agreement to sell control of the Kovykta gas field to OAO Gazprom (GAZP.RS) to be closed very soon, the Prime-Tass news agency reported Wednesday.
"It is possible the deal will be closed in the near future," a TNK-BP official said.
Last year, TNK-BP agreed to sell Gazprom a majority stake in the huge Kovykta gas field in Siberia at a heavily discounted price after coming under pressure from environmental officials for allegedly breaching the terms of its license.
That deal was signed in June 2007 but hasn't yet been finalized, sparking speculation it has faltered.
TNK-BP's Russian shareholders are now locked in a public dispute with their joint venture partner BP PLC (BP), which people familiar with the matter say is tightly interwoven with disagreements over the Kovykta gas field sale.